Key retainer



July 8, 1924. 1,500,335

W. L. RILEY KEY RETAINER Filed Aug. 7. 1923 avwev-toz Wa ane Z7. Bale u Patented July 8, 1924.

UNITED- STATES WAYNE L. RILEY, or rnusniuc, MICHIGAN.

KEY RETAINER.

Application filed August '7, 1923. Serial No. 656,216.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it know that I, WAYNE L. RILEY, a

citizen of the United States of America, re-

siding at Flushing, in the county of Gene- 6 see and State of Michigan, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Key Retainers, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings.

This invention relates to key retainers and refers more particularly to those of the flexible type.

An object of the invention is to provide a strong and durable retainer which may be supported from an article of wearing apparel so that the keys carried by the retainer will lie flat against the apparel and thus will be kept out of the way.

Another object is to provide a flexible retainer which may be arranged in a plurality of sections so that the keys may be separated or grouped to suit the desire of the wearer.

Another object is to provide a retainer 25 that is very simple in construction and which can be manufactured at a very low cost.

With the above and other objects in view, the invention consists of certain novel features of construction, combination and arrangement of parts as will be more fully described and particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawing:

Figure 1 is a side elevation of the retainer embodying my invention attached to a belt; Figure 2 is a detail view of the retainer.

With the ordinary types of ring retainers, the keys have a tendency to bunch at one point and therefore to hinder a person in the use of one of the keys at the lock. Again the keys are carried by such retainers in such a way that they lie at right angles to the garment from which they are supported, thus, the keys project outwardly and are apt to be in the way. Furthermore, when a large number of keys are carried by such a retainer it is sometimes annoying to find a particular key which it is desired to use.

With the present invention all of the objectionable features just referred to are entirely overcome and I preferably provide an adjustable retainer of the flexible type.

Referring now to the drawing in which like characters of reference designate corresponding parts throughout the several views, the numeral 1 designates a chain, preferably of the link type which is supported from a belt 2 or other suitable article of wearing apparel, preferably by means of a pair of split rings 3 and A respectively that are preferably carried by a hook 5 connected to the belt. The chain may be any convenient size or length desired and is preferably provided with elongated links 6 to which the rings 3 and 4 respectively are connected. The ring 3 is preferably connected to a link at one end of the chain while the ring 4 may be connected to any of the other links according to the length of chain desired to carry the keys 7.

In use, the ring 4 is removed from the chain whereupon the free end of the chain may be moved through the apertured heads 8 of the keys and the ring 4 may then be secured to one of the links 6. Both rings 3 and 4 are then attached to the hook 5 to support the retainer from the belt.

Should it be desired to separate one or more keys from the rest on the retainer, the link 9 at the free end of the chain or one-0f the links adjacent thereto may be secured to the ring 4 to form a loop which will support the key or keys separated from the others.

Although I have shown and described split rings for supporting the chain, it is readily apparent that several other constructions could be substituted so long as they are readily removable from a hook and are detachable from a chain.

While it is believed that from the foregoing description, the nature and advantages of the invention will be readily apparent, I desire to have it understood that I do not limit myself to what is herein shown and described and that such changes may be resorted to when desired as fall within the scope of what is claimed.

What I claim as my invention is:

1. The combination with a support, of a key retainer comprising a link chain and a pair of rings carried by the support, one ring engaging one link of said chain, the other ring detachably engaging a second link of said chain to form a loop for carrying keys and also detachably engaging another link to form a second loop for Carr'- ing other keys.

2. The combination With a hooked support, of a key retainer comprising a flexible I member, and a pair of rings carried by said hooked support, one ring engaging one portion of said flexible member, the other ring detachably engaging another portion of said member to form a loop in said member for carrying keys and also detachably engaging another portion of said flexible member to form a second loop for carrying other keys.

In testimony whereof .I aflix my signature.

WAYNE L. RILEY, 

